July 5, 2023
Our heroines are filling in gaps and rescuing wardrobe orphans this month!
Let’s start with our fair and blond heroine… (at least that’s how I imagine her – your may see her differently!)
When we left our heroine last month, this was her 20-piece capsule wardrobe:
Our heroine has been thinking for a while that she is overdue to add some yellow to her wardrobe! It’s worth mentioning that you can change your color palette if you find that you’ve included an accent color that doesn’t feel right to you… but our heroine is going to give yellow a try!
And she doesn’t have a pair of shorts! She’s not one to wear shorts frequently, but a whimsical pair might be useful for her. So she shops, and this is what she found:
Jade & pearl earrings- By Chavelli; cardigan – Ganni; scarf – Nordstrom; shorts – L.L.Bean; dress – Chelsea28; sandals – Gentle Souls Signature
Small additions, but they make so much difference in the overall look of her wardrobe:
And her accessories have a new brightness:
But of course she has to make sure she knows how she will wear her new clothes:
I can picture her – no tan, but her hair is lighter, longer, and blowing just a bit when she walks…
Our next heroine has quite different taste!
Her wardrobe right now looks like this:
She has two “situations” that she wants to address this month:
- She only has 2 green garments – maybe olive shorts would make sense? and
- Her rust sweater looks great with other colors, but maybe she can find something to wear under it that includes the rust color.
Sweatshirt – L.L.Bean; plaid shirt – Beachlunchlounge; bracelets – Soul Journey Jewelry; shorts – L.L.Bean; sandals – MIA; tote – J.Crew
Yes, the sweatshirt wasn’t specifically on her shopping list, but she well knows that something with HER colors, in a style that she likes, won’t stick around long in her size!
Now her wardrobe and accessories look like this – more filled in, without obvious orphans!
This is the summer in which finding a way to wear a sweatshirt in EASY – it’s so cool, so many days! But she tries to be business-like and methodical when assessing how well these garments will work for her. Really nicely clothing is expensive enough that we should be intelligent and organized in our shopping…
Our last heroine for the day must have freckles, don’t you imagine? And a touch of russet in her hair?
This wardrobe just doesn’t have gaps – it all flows together!
But our heroine is feeling like maybe another print or two among her garments might be a nice change… And a 2nd pair of shorts? She lives somewhere with legitimate summer days!
Wood link bracelet – Dannijo; stripe waffle fabric top – L.L.Bean; camp shirt – Orvis; bag – Madewell; Bermuda shorts – L.L.Bean; espadrilles – Toni Pons
Her wardrobe doesn’t change in its overall “feel” but it has a touch more visual interest now…
When she gets all of her new clothes delivered, she takes a few moments to try them on with a few different things, to get some sense of how well they will fit in with her very tightly knit wardrobe!
One thing that our heroines have all learned – being able to SEE what’s in your wardrobe is key to making smart decisions about what (if anything) to buy when you have that yen for something new and lovely…
Maybe a spreadsheet of what you’re wearing? Or photographs, assembled into a collage?
love,
Janice
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Love Love Love the additions to the Degas and the Renoir! We are off on a week long trip today, traveling by train. At the last minute I am throwing in a pair of shorts just in case it is too warm for even my lightweight pants. An advantage of being a long time reader of TVF is I have accents and neutrals I can mix and match and add a pair of shorts knowing they will go with all the tops. Thank you Janice!
ps Love the look back as well!
Janice,
Olive green ! I have rediscovered it for times other than just reserved for Autumn . As I was getting dressed the other rainy day, I was thinking that brown felt too dark and heavy, tan felt too easily made dirty, denim blue felt too cool but aha ! Olive green was the perfect answer for that day and many others ! I felt like Goldilocks within my own closet.
I have just packed for a long upcoming weekend at the New Jersey shore, and thanks to you I have really narrowed down what is necessary to take plus a few “ just in case of inside temperature adjustments “ — they keep the house rather cold with AC . I love efficiency ,and after years of enjoying your site, I think that I have finally earned an “ A” in Packing 101, or darned close to that ! Thank you, thank you !
I adore the wardrobe for the blonde. The colors wouldn’t suit me but they are luscious and delicious and a feast for the eyes.
These are great additions. My favorite posts of the month. Can’t wait till Friday. Also liking the little black plus beige plus wild card accent series that has been going on.
I am loving the beige/black series too! But it took me a few days to realize the beige and black items were mostly the same in each wardrobe. A testament to how much power the accent color has, I think! These are all great additions today. I love that we are adding bridge garments that have pattern and multiple colors. So pretty. Off to play with my wardrobe for fall so I know what to start sewing. I was reading a look back where you picked 10 garments that were favorites that you might save if there was a fire or something. I’m going to pick my fall fave 10 and build some clusters around them and see how that comes out.
These wardrobes are looking great! I am still trying to finish my Hibiscus wardrobe from last year…too much other stuff going on…but it’s still on my plate… ;-)
I am very intrigued by the Degas wardrobe; that is truly a great wardrobe for someone who has to make so many decisions in life/ work/ whatever so that just being able to pick anything and know it will work would be a real respite. It just looks…restful…
The addition of a new accent color and more print items has me smiling today!
I wish I could wear yellow. The first wardrobe is delectable, though I’d wear shades of light grey instead of beige.
I have to admit to feeling a bit bored with the brown wardrobe. I’d be sorely tempted to add the red from her bodice. Perhaps trying to do a similar exercise in grey wouldn’t work for me.
The Degas just keeps getting better! I love not only the limited color palette, but also this heroine’s style. She really has it all together. I just wish I could wear those variations of brown.
I’m loving the Stylebook app to keep track of my wardrobe, mostly because of the fairly good background removal tool for photos. It has lots of statistics that it will calculate for you (cost per wear, most worn, last date worn, etc.) if you take a moment to add your outfit to the calendar. I tend to buy most of my clothing online and have trained myself to immediately download a photo of the item into my wardrobe album so I don’t have to photograph it myself (though that option is available). I especially like being able to look back at the calendar to find what I last wore at an event that will likely have many of the same attendees to avoid repeating myself.
I have been admiring your posts for years. Finally! I decided to pull the trigger on one of your capsules. My daughter helped me decide on the one based off the Renoir. I bought about 80% of the items to go on a trip to Italy this fall. I am loving the things I am gathering :) Thank you for being such an inspiration!